Three-dimensional fluid simulation of a plasma display panel cell.

In order to understand the discharge characteristics in an alternating current plasma display panel (ac PDP) and optimize it further, a three-dimensional fluid code (FL3P) has been developed. Using this simulator, various three-dimensional features of discharges are investigated in the sustain mode of PDP. First, the striations of wall charge are observed at both the anode and cathode side. Second, the local efficiency is obtained as a function of position. It is mainly divided into the anode region and the cathode region and highest near the anode center. Finally, the effects of various three-dimensional parameters are studied. As one of the examples showing the effect of electrode shaping, the discharge characteristics of a T-shaped electrode cell are compared with those of a conventional cell. The phosphor on barrier ribs contributes to over 44% of the total luminance, but barrier ribs themselves do not play an important role in the overall discharge efficiency. Address electrode width is not always proportional to the size of the discharge because of the wall loss of the particles to barrier ribs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]